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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. content — happy
  3. scale — in music
  4. bound — tied together
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. fall — to drop
  7. lean — thin
  8. bound — obliged
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. sharp — clever
  12. fall — the season
  13. pop — music
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. scale — size or range
  16. content — the amount
  17. fall — to drop
  18. bound — certain
  19. kid — child
  20. pop — to visit
  21. lean — to bend
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. kid — to tease
  24. pop — soda

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com